ASALI Architects team, 2015.

Project type : eVolo Skyscraper Competition.

This skyscraper takes a form that is very closely identified with the destruction of a city’s skyline and transforms it into a symbol of hope, optimism and renewal.

When a city’s urban fabric is destroyed, its citizens are traumatized by the horror they endured and the wreckage they witnessed; images that could include the transitory, warped smoke silhouettes of the explosions that rocked and flattened their city. Transforming these images into a positive presence is the aim of this project.

Gaza is such a city - a location where catastrophic explosions have featured prominently in its recent past, an area where actual skyscrapers do not exist; where tall shadows in the sky represent the worst elements its citizens can envision; and where explosions are, unfortunately, the only “skyscrapers” its residents see.

Redefining these silhouettes, so strongly linked to war and destruction, into an enduring, permanent skyscraper will influence the attitude of its people, will define a unique skyline for the city, and solidify a new peaceful, identity for the region. Such a skyscraper will promote a positive, optimistic present while still acknowledging its violent past.